[You are paralyzed]

  The notification appeared in Clive's vision. Damn it. This again. Clive had gotten overconfident. So sure that his rubber would protect him that he didn’t attempt to dodge Sayid’s strike

  Move. He screamed at his body. But it wouldn’t move. He tried to blink. Couldn't do that either. His eyelids were frozen half-open, staring at the sky.

  Through his peripheral vision, he saw Sayid lift his blade.

  "I'll make this quick," Sayid said. “There won’t be a round four."

  The blade began its descent, but a shadow fell across them. Azura crashed into the space between them.

  She hit the ground hard enough to make the earth shake, slamming down mere feet from where Clive lay. Her wings spread wide, blocking out the sky. Her neck arched over him, positioning her body as a living shield.

  No, Clive tried to scream through their bond. No, get away, you'll be—

  The blade struck.

  Sayid's superheated steel drove into Azura's shoulder. The blade punched through scales that should have turned aside lesser weapons. Steam hissed where lightning met dragon flesh.

  Azura roared in pain. The sound rolled across the battlefield. Her body shuddered, her legs buckled, but she stood firm. Her claws dug into the earth, anchoring herself in place.

  Mine, her thoughts came through. My rider. Mine to protect.

  Azura's tail swept forward and slammed into Sayid's chest. The Thunder God flew backward. His blade carved a furrow in the ground before he caught himself.

  Sayid straightened, brushing dust from his robes. "Admirable. Truly. Dragons are magnificent creatures. So much tougher than humans. Scales like armor. Hearts that can withstand pressures that would burst lesser organs."

  He pointed the sword at Azura.

  "But not invulnerable. Everything that lives can be killed. You simply need to find the right voltage."

  Lightning gathered at the blade's tip. "Let's start small," Sayid said. "See how much you can take."

  [Lightning Strike: 10,000 Volts]

  The bolt hit Azura square in the chest.

  Her body went rigid. Her tail thrashed.

  Through their bond, Clive felt the electricity coursing through her, following her nervous system out to every limb. Her heart stuttered, rhythm disrupted. It was much worse than when it struck him.

  Azura! He screamed. Let go! Fly away! PLEASE!

  Azura collapsed to one knee. Smoke rose from where the lightning had struck, her scales blackened and cracked. But her eyes tracked Sayid with undiminished focus.

  Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  She didn't move away from Clive. Her tail repositioned, curling protectively around where he lay.

  Still here, she thought, the words strained. Still... mine.

  "Impressive," Sayid said, and he actually sounded surprised. "Most creatures flee after the first shock. Self-preservation overrides all other instincts." He studied her. "But you? You're choosing to stay. Choosing to suffer."

  Azura snarled. Blood dripped from her mouth.

  "Let's see if your resolve holds." Sayid raised his blade again. More lightning gathered, the sphere growing larger, brighter. The hum became a roar. "This one will hurt more."

  [Lightning Strike: 25,000 Volts]

  The second bolt was sharp. It struck with the sound of breaking stone. Azura's entire body seized again, lifted half off the ground by the force of it. Her wings beat uselessly, spasming.

  No no no no—

  The current stopped. Azura crashed down. This time she couldn't hold her position. Her legs gave out completely. But even fallen, her neck stretched out. Her head positioned itself between Sayid and Clive. Her wing draped over Clive's paralyzed form.

  Won't... leave... Her thoughts were fragmentary. Won't... let him... touch you...

  "Touching," Sayid said softly, and there might have been genuine regret in his voice. He raised his blade a third time. Lightning coiled around it, more than before, building to levels that made the air itself crackle. "But futile."

  RUN! Clive begged through the bond. Please! I just met you. It’s not worth dying for me. You have to—

  Azura's eye met his gaze.

  A dragon never abandons its rider… Never.

  Her wing tightened around him, creating one final barrier.

  Sayid's blade rose to its apex, ready to deliver the killing stroke. The lightning gathered was monstrous now. The ground beneath them began to crack from the ambient charge.

  Clive forced his body to move.

  [Status Effect Removed: Paralyzed]

  [Motor function restored]

  Sensation flooded back. His fingers found his paintbrush. He painted directly into the air.

  [Paint: Ice Barrier]

  A wall of frozen air materialized between them. Sayid's blade hit the barrier and shattered it. Shards of ice exploded outward. But it bought time—two seconds, maybe three.

  Clive rolled, coming up in a crouch between Azura and Sayid. His paintbrush held like a knife. His sketchbook open.

  Azura tried to lift her head. Rider—

  Stay down, Clive sent back. You protected me. Now it's my turn.

  He stood slowly. The burned rubber still clung to his chest, his shirt was in tatters, blood ran from a dozen places. But he stood.

  "Thank you, Azura," Clive said aloud.

  The Thunder God lowered his blade slightly. "Oh? Are you finally done hiding behind your dragon?" He faced Clive. “Tell you what, artist. I’ll make you an offer. Your dragon pisses me off. Walk away, leave the dragon. Abandon her, and I’ll let you live.”

  Clive looked at Azura. At the blood pooling beneath her. At the burns across her scales. At her wing still draped protectively over where he'd been lying. Then he looked back at Sayid.

  "I met her a few days ago," Clive said. "We've flown together, what? Ten times? Fifteen? And she was willing to die for me anyway." Anger flowed through his veins. He met Sayid's storm-gray eyes. “What kind of man would I be if I abandoned her.”

  He activated his [Artist Eye] on Sayid.

  [Thunder God Al Sayid]

  Power level: 600

  A power level of six hundred. Clive's own power level hovered around four fifty. The math was simple. Sayid was half again as strong. Faster. More experienced. Without his rubber cheat, he could feel the difference in their firepower.

  There was once a time he would have despaired at those numbers. But Clive was used to being the underdog by now. He had been in a similar situation with the Warden and the Saintess. Numbers were just information. They told you the size of the problem. They didn't tell you whether it could be solved.

  His [Artist's Eyes] focused on Sayid. Breaking the Thunder God down into components—stance, blade position, the way lightning coiled around his form, the micro-expressions that preceded each attack.

  Six hundred versus four hundred.

  Clive had faced worse odds.

  He raised his paintbrush. "You're right about one thing, Sayid. There will be no round four. One of us will die today."

  The depth of a bond is not measured in time, but in what one is willing to sacrifice for it.

  — From the teachings of the Dragon Knight Corps